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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Léonce, post: 203930, member: 3798&quot;]Let see the wood density of this piece. Keeping in mind that after felling, timber lose moisture, following the outside and inside conditions. Long time ago, trees for timber were only cut in winter time because the moisture content had to be lower than 20% to avoid fungal attacks. Huge wood ovens were not existant to dry the fresh cut wood like the ones today. So, the wood was kept outside under sheds protection for up to two years before the cutting process. Most of the dry wood had less than 6% of moisture, before. Today, most wood have around 12% of moisture after the dry process.</p><p><br /></p><p>Anyway, the technical way to calculate weight of wood gets somewhat tricky. The specific gravity of wood changes with moisture content once it goes below 30% moisture, and what is called the fiber saturation point of wood. Above this fiber saturation point, the physical and mechanical properties of wood do not change.</p><p><br /></p><p>In other words, the specific gravity of wood does not change in wood that is above 30% moisture content. That is because the cellular structure of wood is full of what is called bound water; the water chemically bonded to the wood. The structure of the wood is fully expanded at this point, and any additional water that increases the moisture content is free water residing in the cell pores and lumina.</p><p><br /></p><p>Once moisture content goes below 30%, however, all the free water has been released through evaporation, and the bound water begins to be chemically driven from the wood substance. As it does so, the wood cells begin to shrink, again, just as a sponge does as it dries out. And as it shrinks, the specific gravity of the wood gets higher, and the wood becomes stiffer as the chemical properties change.</p><p><br /></p><p>Most species increase in density anywhere from 10 to 20% as they dry from 30% down to dry. This, by the way, is why wood checks and splits as it dries. So another way of thinking about this is that the density of green wood that above 30% is different (meaning less dense) than the density of the wood as stated in most references, which are usually given as specific gravity at 12% moisture content, for the purposes of those who work with wood.</p><p><br /></p><p>Therefore, to compare my piece of wood with the existing references, I have to add a density factor. This wood sculpture has a moisture of about 2%, which is relatively considering as a completely dry wood. Too low to be taking under consideration and therefore the density factor should be higher by 15% because of the moisture condition. But because of other chemical products used to colour or preserved the wood, I will add about 10% for the density factor.</p><p><br /></p><p>The piece is about 0.0079438 cu.m. (cubic meter) - 10% (0.00079438 cu.m.) for the carving portion. The total volume of wood is about = 0,00715362 cu.m. The weight is about 6 kg.</p><p><br /></p><p>The density is around 839 kg/cu.m. + 10% = 923 kg/cu.m. or 58 lbs/cu.ft.lowgreen[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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